3. Who will be new co-defensive coordinator?
Co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach Jeff Hafley was hired away from Ohio State to become Boston College’s new head coach. With the Buckeyes’ playoff run ended, Ryan Day’s attention now turns to replacing Hafley.
The top candidate is a name familiar to Buckeye fans: Kerry Coombs. He coached the secondary at Ohio State from 2012-17, until following Mike Vrabel to the Tennessee Titans. Ohio State may have to play the waiting game in order to bring Coombs back as the Titans have made the playoffs which might delay Coombs’ decision.
It appears clear that the job is Coombs’ if he wants it, which seems prudent as he consistently recruited and developed first-round talents throughout his time in Columbus.
If Coombs chooses to remain in the NFL, Ohio State will have to look elsewhere. Day wants a secondary coach to balance out the returning coordinator Greg Mattison’s front-seven focus. A potential candidate in Chris Ash (another former Buckeye coach) was recently hired by Texas.
There are no other obvious names with Ohio State links and a secondary background. But Buckeye fans should certainly trust Day to make a great hire, as Hafley was fairly unknown to fans before this season, and that hire turned out great — perhaps too great, because the Buckeyes need to replace him after just one season.